Baroque is back to being a high priority for the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. While the orchestra’s never turned its back on music of 1750 and earlier, it used to have a full-fledged concert series devoted to it led by such early music experts as Christopher Hogwood and Nicholas McGegan.

Now, an outstanding baroque interpreter is again part of the orchestra’s leadership, as this weekend’s first Neighborhood Series concerts of the season feature England’s Jonathan Cohen making his debut as an SPCO artistic partner. And the early returns from Friday evening’s all-baroque program at Eden Prairie’s Wooddale Church show that Cohen has charisma, infectious energy and a lot of talent, and that this relationship might blossom beautifully.

But the concerts might also throw a curve at some audience members’ expectations. A program that features two very popular works by J.S. Bach — his First Violin Concerto and Orchestral Suite No. 3 — alongside pieces by one of Bach’s main inspirations (Dietrich Buxtehude) and closest compositional comrades (Georg Philipp Telemann) might cause some to come in believing that they’ll like the Bach and will need to be sold on the others. Yet the performances that impressed me the most were a marvelously energetic interpretation of Telemann’s “Don Quixote” Suite and a Buxtehude sonata for four musicians that crackled with excitement.

Jonathan Cohen (Photo by Pascal Gely)

Meanwhile, those descriptors didn’t fit Friday’s Bach performances. Despite a lovely slow movement on the Bach violin concerto and some strong playing throughout by soloist Ruggero Allifranchini, the piece never really caught fire. And, speaking of slow movements, Bach’s never written one more popular than the Air from the Third Orchestral Suite. It was suitably pleasant Friday, but the rest of the suite slogged along sluggishly, seldom receiving adequate adrenaline.

But maybe this energy differential can partially be attributed to the SPCO’s newest member, Spanish violinist Francisco Fullana. He helped make such an unexpected thrill ride of a 1684 Buxtehude sonata that everything after it sounded like a vain attempt to recapture that energy level. Fullana bowed furiously on his breakneck solo lines, complemented splendidly by fellow violinist Steven Copes and Zachary Cohen tearing it up on viola da gamba.

That came on the heels of a crisp, stirring version of Telemann’s “Don Quixote.” Conducting while handling both the harpsichord and organ duties, Jonathan Cohen was extremely enjoyable to watch, seemingly sparring with the score in front of him as he bobbed and weaved at the keyboard.

While far more solemn in tone, a Telemann concerto for two flutes and a bassoon made for a low-key, minor-key interlude between the Bachs, flutists Julia Bogorad Kogan and Alicia McQuerrey sounding like two operatic sisters united in confident agreement against the darker descant bassoon tones of Charles Ullery. It was yet another example of the program’s least familiar fare getting the most passionate performances.

Rob Hubbard can be reached at robhubbard@pioneerpress.com.

Who: The St. Paul Chamber Orchestra with director and keyboardist Jonathan Cohen

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